Sir Roger Bannister, who ran into the history books by becoming the first man to run a mile in under four minutes, is to be given the Freedom of Oxford.

Sir Roger Bannister

The famous athlete, now 74, will receive the rare honour in a ceremony at Oxford Town Hall on May 12, a week after celebrations of the 50th anniversary of his run on May 6, 1954, when he put the city's Iffley Road running track on the map.

Sir Roger will be at the Oxford University sports ground with guests including Sebastian Coe and Steve Ovett to see if runners from the British Milers' Club can match his achievement.

He said he was delighted to receive the honour and was looking forward to attending the ceremony with wife Moyra, 75, and children Erin, 46, Clive, 45, Thurstan, 44, and Charlotte, 40.

Sir Roger added: "I'm so pleased that I'm going to be given the Freedom of the City -- it's a great honour and one that's seldom given.

"When I first came to Oxford, there was a three-lap to the mile track at Iffley Road and it was in a bad condition, with the roots of an elm tree denting the surface.

"In 1949, as president of the Oxford University Athletics Club, I managed to raise the money to lay a new quarter-mile track. I wanted the achievement to take place in Oxford."

Sir Roger, of Bardwell Road, north Oxford, joins a small number of people who have been given the award, including Oxford scientist Sir Richard Doll, Nelson Mandela, author Colin Dexter and Burmese human rights campaigner Aung San Suu Kyi.

Maureen Christian, the council's executive member for culture, said: "Sir Roger deserves this not just for his fantastic achievement at Iffley Road but also for his distinguished career as a neurologist and as Master of Pembroke College."

The Royal Mint is to mark the anniversary of Sir Roger's record run with a special 50p coin.